After the historic 2008 election, we had a new political landscape before us full of possibility for real foreign policy change.

Did your representatives in Congress help move that vision forward, or stand in the way? Find out with Peace Action West’s 2009 congressional voting record.

You and I know that an election isn’t enough to make change. We need to be congressional watchdogs—making sure our representatives are living up to their responsibility to represent our best interests in Washington. We combed through all the votes that happened in the first year of Obama’s presidency and the new 111th Congress so you’d have the tools you need to hold them accountable.

On Friday, the White House announced that negotiations with Russia on the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START) to cut both US and Russian deployed nuclear weapons stockpiles as well as delivery vehicles were complete. This treaty is an essential part of the Obama administration’s overall agenda to reduce the threat posed by nuclear weapons. With 95 percent of the world’s more than 23,000 nuclear weapons in their arsenals, it is important that the US and Russia complete this first round of nuclear weapons reductions smoothly and move on to negotiations for deeper reductions. The White House released some key facts about the new treaty:

Aggregate limits:

Livermore- On March 25, 2010, the White House announced that the United States and Russia have agreed to a new treaty to further reduce their nuclear weapons arsenals. In April, the new Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START) will be signed by President Obama and President Medvedev in Prague, the site of President Obama  s historic speech endorsing a world free of nuclear weapons. The Alliance for Nuclear Accountability supports deeper reductions in the nuclear stockpile and applauds this momentous accomplishment. It is a positive step for U.S. nuclear policy and reinvigorates the international effort to eliminate the threat posed by nuclear weapons.

Chief of Staff Debbie Curtis accepts an award on behalf of Rep. Stark at the Alliance for Nuclear Accountability's DC Days ceremony. Peace Action West Executive Director Jon Rainwater presents the award for Rep. Stark's work to change nuclear weapons policy.

The nuclear weapons hawks are at it again and it’s up to us to stop them.

Through their intense lobbying campaign, hawks in Congress and the nuclear weapons labs got a whopping $7 billion for nuclear weapons programs in next year’s proposed budget. Rep. Pete Stark (D-CA) is leading the fight to strip the money out, and he needs your help. Can you click here to send your representative a message?

Livermore, CA – After almost two years of investigation, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) issued a report on the problems reported by claimants and advocates with the implementation of the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act of 2000, as amended (EEOICPA). While it will take some time to comprehend the report in its entirety, the Alliance of Nuclear Worker Advocacy Groups (ANWAG) fully supports GAO’s recommendation for the creation of an independent advisory board to oversee the Department of Labor’s (DOL) responsibilities under EEOICPA. ANWAG also supports GAO’s recommendation for transparent public access to the Site Exposure Matrices (SEM) utilized by the DOL claims examiners to adjudicate claims.